NW England to Astorga - via Santiago, Porto or Madrid?

[nidarosa]

Hi, I am planning on walking from Astorga to Santiago this autumn and was wondering if anyone had any experiences, comments or suggestions on how to get there from NW England? I prefer to fly from Liverpool, where Ryanair fly to Porto or Madrid, or I can get a flight from Manchester to Madrid, or get the train down to Stansted and fly straight into Santiago. From Porto I would get the bus to Santiago and from there to Astorga, or I would catch a bus or train from Madrid to Leon/Astorga and fly back to Madrid from Santiago. Or am I missing something? I admit I have only checked Ryanair and EasyJet, are there other carriers that fly somewhere clever from the NW? I prefer to make as few changes as possible, as I find they drain energy, time and resources. I really miss the Ryanair flight from Liverpool to Santiago ...

Any suggestions are very welcome!
Linda

 

[nidarosa]

This happened: In the post today I received my automatic renewal of my travel insurance - surely a sign. I then had a look at my least preferred option - the train to Stansted. Which cost £179 on the fast one ... apart from the one departure that cost only a tenth of that. What's a girl to do? Surely another sign. So off to the flight checker, where I got a cheap return flight to Santiago, and miracle of miracles - the flight fit with the train! The deal was too good to miss and I grabbed it with both hands. I managed to book a room for the night in the centre of town too without breaking any kind of bank. I am still interested in any cleverer (read: quicker) way to get there though, for next time!

 

[Peadarmac]

Hi Linda,

I went from Astorga to SdC in Sept 2011 . I flew from Dublin to Madrid.

If you fly to Madrid you can get a bus directly from Madrid Airport to Astorga.No need to travel into Madrid City Centre.

At journeys end you can fly back from SdC to Mardid on Iberia Airlines
http://www.iberiaexpress.com

The bus company serving Astorga is ALSA . Just make your way to Terminal 4 (via the Airport courtesy shuttle bus) where you can pick up the bus.

ALSA site is : www.alsa.es

I got the 1.45pm bus.The bus went direct to Astorga and arrived at 6pm.Lovely way to travel and cost €32. I was in time to get a bed (almost the last bed I think !!) at the Alb.Siervos de Maria http://www.caminodesantiagoastorga.com/ but if arriving at this time now you might want to book alternative accomodation (small pension or private Albergue) just to make sure you have a bed for your first night.

Just another option !!!

Hope this helps.

Buen Camino
Peadar

 

[whariwharangi]

Aena operates all of Spain's airports. That makes it relatively easy to find destinations and airlines.
http://www.aena-aeropuertos.es/csee/Satellite/HomeAenaAeropuertos/en/

Renfe operates the train network. The train is the fastest way to get anywhere in Spain and is probably the fastest way to get to Astorga from Santiago.
http://www.renfe.com/

I think you have hit on the most efficient way to meet your objectives for your trip.

 

[nidarosa]

Cheers, Paedar and Whariwharangi, these are brilliant links! Nothing like getting the advice of someone who's already been there and done that. I did imagine the Liverpool/Manchester-Madrid-bus or train to Astorga would be the fastest, but not it seems the cheapest. Also I quite like trains, so even if my cheap tickets amount to quite a few legs, which I said I would rather avoid (sigh), it is pretty straightforward and won't stress me out. Strangely when looking at the Renfe time tables they don't seem to run from Santiago to Astorga, looks like I'd have to change in Leon, so I might as well get the bus.

Again thanks for the info, I will bookmark this thread straight away for future reference (also the Other Half might be nipping down to Santiago to see me walk in) and make sure I report back on my many-legged journey there and back.

Oh, and with all the money I saved I have bagged myself some very nice hotel rooms in Santiago and Astorga - don't want to take up the albergue bed before I have started walking! (Also I kind of like nice hotel rooms ...)

Linda

 

[whariwharangi]

Cheers, Paedar and Whariwharangi, these are brilliant links! Nothing like getting the advice of someone who's already been there and done that. I did imagine the Liverpool/Manchester-Madrid-bus or train to Astorga would be the fastest, but not it seems the cheapest. Also I quite like trains, so even if my cheap tickets amount to quite a few legs, which I said I would rather avoid (sigh), it is pretty straightforward and won't stress me out. Strangely when looking at the Renfe time tables they don't seem to run from Santiago to Astorga, looks like I'd have to change in Leon, so I might as well get the bus.

Again thanks for the info, I will bookmark this thread straight away for future reference (also the Other Half might be nipping down to Santiago to see me walk in) and make sure I report back on my many-legged journey there and back.

Oh, and with all the money I saved I have bagged myself some very nice hotel rooms in Santiago and Astorga - don't want to take up the albergue bed before I have started walking! (Also I kind of like nice hotel rooms ...)

Linda

Best check that again ... I get 4 trains per day 3 of which require a transfer at Ourense or Monforte de Lemos.

 

[nidarosa]

Ah! I am on the Renfe website now, and when I put Santiago as the departure station, Astorga does not come up on the list of destinations. Because they have hidden it and only display the most popular destinations! I didn't see the Other/All Stations button there ... Thanks for pointing that out. So some of the trains are faster than the bus, but none of them fit as perfectly time wise. I think I will still get the bus, but cheers again for checking, I will remember that All stations button from now on.

Thanks,
Linda

 

[tyrrek]

I think your experience hits the nail on the head - it's a balance between flight and train prices. Long train journeys tend to be cheaper in Spain, so all things being equal I'd look at flying from the NW to Madrid first. However, if booking well in advance I might try to get a £10 flight to Dublin next time and from there to SdC.
If flying to/from Stansted it's absolutely crucial to book the train in advance. My plans this year were uncertain so I hadn't booked ahead and paid over £100 single off peak just to get back to Preston! This is also a consideration for people coming back from long caminos where their end date is uncertain.

 

[nidarosa]

Good points, Tyrrek! I flew back via Madrid in 2012 and it wasn't cheap as I booked only two days before departure and with two different carriers. I'd rather have booked cheap tickets, given myself extra time and spent the money on accommodation and food in Santiago. The return train tickets I got this time were £38 (Liverpool-London Euston in two hours, absolute bargain!) and the return flights £58, and the bus to Astorga (booked and paid, seat chosen) was £26. All in all not a bad price, and an easy way to leave Santiago (is it ever easy to leave Santiago?) and then a comfortable train journey through England to carry me home. I am happy with that now, even if it eats up a whole day and really most of the day after, but I am looking forward to seeing the Spanish landscape from the bus and spending the afternoon and evening sitting on the Plaza in Astorga people/pilgrim watching. Can't wait!

 

[tyrrek]

That sounds great Nidarosa. Sometimes we can just be lucky with timings, prices, and the whims of Ryanair/British rail. My last Camino (1 week from Ourense to SdC) cost less than £200 including flights, train to Ourense and accommodation, but excluding the journey back from Stansted. That's why I was so annoyed to pay £102 to travel the last 200 miles at the end!

 

[nidarosa]

Ouch. Yes, in future I will make sure I get the tickets booked early, and I think these three options - from Stansted to Santiago, Liverpool to Porto or Liverpool/Manchester to Madrid - are the most efficient. I think I prefer the Santiago and Porto alternatives, as it seems most sensible from Santiago afterwards. I met so many Scandinavians who had flown in to Leon, but that doesn't seem to work very well from the NW.

 

[nidarosa]

Me again! When I went walking in September I was meant to be walking with my partner, but that didn't work out because of work. However we are trying again! And in case anyone else is wondering about the best way to get from the NW to Astorga, it is to fly EasyJet from Liverpool to Madrid T1 and then get the bus from Madrid T4 straight to Astorga. Cheap and cheerful. We are taking only hand luggage so I could have gambled on the bus that leaves T4 45 mins after touchdown, but it takes 6h15, while the bus 1h45 after landing takes only 4h45 - can you believe I get there earlier by taking the later bus! And less time on buses and more in a café sounds about right to me. We get to Astorga just in time to check in and have dinner, meet some pilgrims and then start walking the next morning. Can't wait! Return by Alsa bus to Porto or Porto airport, then Ryanair flight straight back to Liverpool again, so return flights aren't always the best way. Hope this can be of help to someone!

 

[nidarosa]

... and she returns to the thread. I am now planning a few other walks and weekends and then realised September is not far off, which instantly gave me a solid dose of the PCB and sent me looking for tickets to you-know-where. And - they have moved my flights!! The train to Stansted now no longer fits with the flight to Santiago, I can't get there early enough for departure and come home after the last bus or train has gone for the night. Sigh. Also I was told there were flights to Santiago from Dublin, which is only across the water, but no. Even the Madrid flights are too late and too early to catch any other decent transport and I am looking at adding nights in hotels to the bill.

For those of you who are going soon or just come back, what is the current clever way of getting from the North West - Liverpool or Manchester - to Santiago and back? (not going is not an option)

 

[NualaOC]

Another possible option is via Barcelona. This may seem strange, but depending on flight times it can work out well. An early morning flight from the UK to Barcelona might connect with an Iberia/Vuelling flight to Santiago. It's worth a try!

There are also flights form Barcelona to Leon, but when I last checked the times weren't ideal.

 

[nidarosa]

Thanks, @NualaOC - You're right, it feels counterproductive but I will give it a go! It's the many legged travel I don't like, as long as I am on a plane/bus/train/other I am fine, but the waiting and queueing and hanging on which costs money and saps energy ... Gaah! So a direct flight to Barca and then on to Leon would be great! I can always return via Porto, I know that one by now. Thanks for the tip!

 

[whariwharangi]

Ryan Air provides one flight weekly from Liverpool to Porto.

ANA operates Portugal airports
http://www.ana.pt/en-US/Aeroportos/porto/Porto/TheAirport/AbouttheAirport/Pages/AbouttheAirport.aspx

Easy Jet flys Manchester to Bilbao.

 

[nidarosa]

Hm, when I looked earlier today there were two a week, Monday and Friday, but always at the same time that is awkward to connect to. I have however found some interesting flights from Madrid on Iberia Express, I might end up going LPL-MAD-SCQ.

(edited after double checking)

 

[tyrrek]

You can ALMOST be very clever and go from Manchester to Santiago via Geneva with Easyjet, but it's tight. On certain days of the week there's a flight from Manchester at 8am arriving in Geneva at 10.50am. The flight to Santiago leaves at 12.30. Coming back by that route should be easier to organise. Each leg is currently somewhere between around £20 and £50 depending when in September you want to go.

The problem with connecting anywhere in Spain is that it's still holiday season so getting anywhere in Spain from the UK is pricey.

 

[nidarosa]

Thanks @tyrrek , great advice, I will keep it in mind. Also I travel exclusively with hand luggage so no waiting for the bag to come through and missing flights I was thinking about bringing my PacerPoles but they are heavy when not in use and heavy to send and hard to find at the other end ... so I might not. Paying good money to have them checked and then have to wait for them sounds a bit daft.

 

[nidarosa]

Turns out I did manage to be clever after all! I got EasyJet flights to and from Liverpool and Madrid, then Iberia Express from Madrid to Santiago. Arriving late, having time for a good brunch the next day and then Alsa bus to Astorga or Ponferrada, we'll see what happens. Either way I will be pilgrim watching in the evening before I start walking the next day!